Electric Embers
by ruffledparasol
Summary: Set in Neverland, when The Savior begins to have magical melt downs, Regina see's the tattoo on Emma's wrist and instantly her world goes into a blur. Could she be the second chance that she was destined to have such a long time ago? (Swan Queen, Neverland rewrite, with the kiss we should have had! - Oneshot)


**Hello Sugarplums! Being that it is early Sunday morning, just about the time that I should be heading to bed, I decided to post this. I can not tell you what this story means to me. Honestly. I have been writing it ever since the Once Upon A Time Season 3 Episode 3 - Quite A Common Fairy! I really am not sure why it has taken so long to complete? Biffy says it has to do with my lack of good tea ever since I was transported here from the past. **

**However, without further ado, please do enjoy! To all of you who are reading/following my ongoing Harry Potter/ Swan Queen fic- much love! Here's a something to keep you stated whilst waiting for more magic from out leading ladies! To all of you lovelies who have loved on my one shot collection - big kiss! Enjoy this MASSIVE one shot!**

**Please comment as they are the sustenance that I live on!**

**Love, RuffledParasol _(don't own OUAT! All mistakes our mine... but mostly Biffys(; )_**

* * *

><p>"I can hear you, show yourself."<p>

The low baritone voice of the pirate captain spoke as he stepped out of his place behind the jungle foliage.

"Jumpy, are we?"

"No," Emma Swan responded as the dark leather clad pirate approached her. "Just concerned. I've got a lot on my mind at the moment."

"Ahh-"

Even in the dense wilderness the sky could still be seen, calm as ever. The stars hadn't even bothered to come out yet which left nothing up above except of the motionless ever so quickly the open sky seemed to be lit, glowing in a purple haze, and then as soon as it was there, it was gone. The blonde turned, "Did you really save his life?"

"That surprise you?" The captain said.

"Well, you and David aren't exactly- how do you say it, _mates_." She said, mimicking his voice.

Hook took a step forward, shortening the space between him and the blonde, "Doesn't mean i'd leave your father to parish on this island."

Emma nodded, a slight smile cracking her face, "Thank you."

A overtly audible sigh came from the dark clothed man, "Perhaps gratitude is in order now."

"Yeah... that's what the thank you was for."

"Emm," He stepped closer, the space between the pirate and his conquest nearly gone, "that's all your fathers life is worth to you?

"Please-" Emma closed the distance, challenging, "you couldn't handle it."

A dark cloud fogged the pirates eyes. "Perhaps you're the one who couldn't handle it."

Suddenly the blonde grabbed him by his coat, pulling him into a searing kiss.

_SQ_

The pirates mind was blown. Killian found all of the thoughts running through his mind suddenly being smashed together in a blur of spinning colors and lights as if they were all racing to beat an impending explosion. And then suddenly, they were gone! As if he had been electrified, his mind went cold, lifeless and pure white, a complete blank.

"That was-"

"A one time thing-" The blonde grasping his coat collar spoke, more steadily than his breathy voice had aloud. She straightened up, releasing him from her grasp, looking past him, "don't follow me, wait five minutes. Go get some firewood or something."

Killian was stunned, petrified at the spot as he watched the woman walk away, her long golden hair lit behind her by the moonlight almost creating a glow. And then, as if his mouth wasn't under his control anymore, he heard himself whisper to her retreating form.

"_As you wish." _

With that she had disappeared somewhere behind the foliage.

His good hand immediately shot to his lips where she had kissed him and left what felt like burn marks from an electrical shock on his mouth. Feeling nothing he looked down and realised, there was no way he would be moving for the next hour let alone the next five minutes. Where his hook used to be, his arm now sported a sparkly cuff, chaining himself to the tree behind him.

The pirate sighed, almost chuckling to himself as his eyebrow shot up at no one in particular.

"Ahh, good form."

_SQ_

"Regina, wait!"

The brunette kept running at her hurried pace, pushing branches out of her way with extreme force, sending them hurtling back at the blonde.

"Regina!" Emma yelled. "Stop!"

Suddenly a flash of white protruded from the golden haired womans body. In a puff of white smoke she disappeared from her spot behind the moving woman and reappeared just inches in front of where she stood.

"Regina!" Emma said, grabbing onto the woman just before she ran into her full speed. "Stop! Look at me."

The brunette jumped, her current course of action suddenly being uprooted by the appearance of the woman now in front of her.

"Why are you following me? What do you want from me?!" The brunette yelled.

Emma grasped her hands onto to the other woman's small arms to keep her from moving, "Regina, what is wrong with you?!"

"Nothing!" She responded harshly, as she wriggled her arms trying to break free.

"There sure as hell is something wrong with you!" Emma said. She tightened her grip against the struggling woman, "Why are you running?"

"It's been 5 days and my son is still missing! He's out there somewhere on this _God forsaken_ island, and we're no closer to finding him then we were back in Storybrooke! _And _I'm surrounded by you, a fallen fairy, that idiotic boy masquerading as a captain, and the two biggest idiots on the planet! Can't I enjoy a run without being chastised? I think that's completely normal!"

"No, no it isn't! That isn't why you are running Regina," Emma yelled as the other woman tried opened her mouth to argue back, "don't you lie to me! Normal people go running to let off steam, they don't go booking off at night into a frozen jungle when someone shows them their tattoo!"

The struggling brunette froze, her insistent thrashing turned into full on violent shaking.

"Regina, what is wrong with you?!"

The previous mayors face froze, slowly Emma could feel the body of the older woman begin to go rigid as she began to regain control of herself. Emma had never seen the other woman like this. Regina had always been strong and regal, holding herself to a standard no lower than perfection. Emma constantly found herself dozing off and wondering how the impeccable mayor managed to keep everything down to her hair so perfect all the time. There was never a single strand out of place. Recently she kept finding herself waking with an urge to mess up the mayors flawless hair-just to see if the woman would die immediately if one of those dark strands didn't fall perfectly to frame her small face, chocolate eyes and full lips. Emma swore if chocolate were a color then it would be the exact shade of the mayors eyes. Of course she didn't say that aloud to anyone, it was more of a silent appreciation of the woman who had made her feel like utter crap for months before beginning what she liked to call "a symbiotic partnership" with her for the sake of their shared son. And in their short time on the island, she felt as if somehow it might have grown from their rocky partnership to something along the lines of an undeniable understanding. She wouldn't go as far as to say a friendship, because that was definitely out of the question with the woman, but there was definitely more there than before.

When Emma had returned to the camp two nights ago, water spurting uncontrollably from her fingertips, the brunette had immediately taken her out of the prying eyes of the pirate and obnoxious questioning of her parents to a remote part of the jungle.

"_What is going on?!" Emma sweated. Streams of water now gushing out from her fingertips as if she had volunteered for them to become the next Niagara. The tips of each stream began crystallizing into ice. _

"_You're experiencing a magic burst." The brunette voiced as she began circling her right hand in the air above Emma's palms._

_A film of purple smoke began to circle around her hands. It flitted lightly, encompassing the spouting fingertips, then suddenly disappeared._

"_What was that?" Emma exclaimed, "The water hasn't stopped, I don't feel any different!?"_

"_Hmph." Regina paused looking the closest that Emma had ever seen her to being stumped. Then without warning the temperature around them seemed to raise substantially. Emma looked down at the brunette's hand that were now aglow holding a ball of fire._

"_Regina-wha?!" _

_Without warning the brunette shot the flame, sending it straight at the offending waterfalls. Instantly the flooding rapids ceased and the spouts from the blondes fingertips dissipated, leaving nothing but a few falling embers in the rising steam._

_Emma's heart was beating rapid fire in her throat as she collapsed onto the nearest rock behind her._

"_What ... was...that?" She breathed, hesitant to lift her hand to her thudding chest as she tried to catch her breath._

"_A sign."_

_Through the pounding in her chest, she pushed to speak, "What do you mean?"_

"_You just experienced a magic burst Ms. Swan. It happens when you have become so overwhelmed allowing your emotions to take over and cloud your judgement that your body physically can't handle it and magically it releases itself in it's purest form."_

But now, standing by the panting woman in the middle of the jungle, the normal depth of her brown eyes had completely lost their light, it was as if they had been iced over in a chilling glaze. Regina looked like she had seen a ghost.

"I-I."

_SQ_

"NO WAY IN HELL! Not even if hell itself froze over would I _ever _let that happen!"

"David!" Snow yelled, trying to calm her raging husband.

"Mary Margaret! Do you really think it's a good idea to have _her_, teach our daughter magic!?" The man flung his strong arm out accusingly at the dark haired woman,next to his daughter, bringing it back just as quickly as if the gesture had burned him.

"She's not teaching me magic!" Emma shouted back. She refused to have her fate decided for her while she stood by silently, "She's teaching me how to control it!"

Both Mary Margaret and David turned to look at her. Emma felt herself stand up taller.

"Emma," David began, softening his voice while reaching out for his daughter, but doing nothing to hide his distrustful demeanor. "I know that you love Henry and that you'd do anything to save him. But using magic? Trusting her. That's not going to help us."

She shook her arm from her fathers overly tight grasp. "This isn't about Henry. This is about the magic burst I just experience that literally had me shooting out waterfalls of ice like I was Frozone from the Incredibles!"

The group that now included the pirate all looked at her dumbstruck like she was a fairytale character that had appeared out of no where to say that all of the bedtime stories ever read to children were real and that magic did, in fact, exist. And now they were standing in the fictional place where kids go to never grow up. _Wait_.

Emma shook her head to speak as she heard the woman next to her - who had been silent up till now - say the same words as her verbatim. "It's Henry's favorite movie."

Emma eyed the brunette, her eyes mimicking the other woman's wide eyed expression. The brunette nodded in silent agreement.

"Look," Emma let out a breath, turning towards the crowd, "I know your feelings about magic, and I understand your concern. But if i'm going to become a human waterfall every time I get stressed. The least I should do is learn how to control it."

David let out an audible sigh of exasperation as the saviour stepped closer to her concerned parents.

"Regardless of what you think, I'm going to learn. All I can ask is for you to trust me. Regina's going to teach me, she's the only one who can. Trust in me, and know that I trust her."

_SQ_

"Regina, what is it?"

The brunette's eyes were glued to the ground, looking everywhere but at the blonde's eyes. "Regina."

The mayor's eyes snapped up. Emma gasped. She had definitely seen something that scared her. There was no regal prouse behind her dark eyes, no hell raising fire. Emma had never seen her like this. She looked small. She looked scared. She looked afraid.

"Your tattoo." The mayor finally spoke. Her small voice rattled the blonde out of her worried thinking.

"Yeah?"

"When did you get it?"

Emma could feel her eyebrows knitting as the confusion spread across her face before she could stop it.

"Uh-" She remembered the night the tattoo had appeared on her exactly. She had felt it when it burned onto her skin. She didn't know it at the time but it was the first time she had ever experienced magic, "when I was 16."

The brunette gasped.

Emma traced the small flower on her newly exposed wrist as the memories flooded back.

It was a dark night on the eve of her 16th birthday. A young Emma sat in her rickety bed in the dirty orphanage staring out of the small window beside her. This was the last night she would be able to stay. Tomorrow, on her birthday everyone would be cheering for her. All of the younger kids would be looking at her in awe as they watched her walk out the front doors, finally allowed to leave. She remembered watching the older kids when she was young, finally reaching their 16th birthdays and becoming old enough to live on their own. She had never cheered. She was always jealous. Jealous that they got to live on their own. Jealous that they finally were allowed to leave that wretched place.

Now sitting there as the minutes ticked away, encroaching on her so called 'freedom day', she wasn't happy, or excited like she had always imagined she would be. She was scared. Only now did she see why the older kids had always looked so pale when they grabbed their handful of belongings and made their way out of the doors for the last time. They had known they weren't heading towards their freedom. They were heading towards their death.

No longer did they have a roof over their heads at night to protect from the raging storms of Boston. Nor did they have the guarantee of 3 square meals a day. Nevermind the fact that they were always watered down and tasted like the same mush. Emma realized to her horror that all of the years she had spent hating the ladies who forced her to eat their badly reheated meals were coming to an end. Now no one was going to be there to remind her to eat, much less provide her food. She wasn't being let out into the world, she was being kicked out. To old to stay, too old to find a family, to old to be loved.

A single tear rolled down the pale blondes face as her eyes glazed staring out at the moon. A light glistened out of the corner of her wet eye. It was a star. Closing her eyes, letting the intruding teardrops cascade down her face, she wished.

She didn't wish for unlimited food, or a family to take her in, or the ability to turn back time so that she never had to leave the safety of the orphanage. No. Emma Swan wished for love. And true love. Because somewhere, buried deep down below thick layers of hurt and disbelief, cynicism and loss, she still held onto hope. Ever since she could remember her first and only real friend, August, had said it to her every night as he watched over her as she slept. When she woke up with nightmares of her latest family bringing her back to the dark doors of the orphanage after they had gotten tired of her he had held her, cradling her in his arms, while whispering in her ear. She remembered it clear as day.

'_Everything's going to be alright Emma. Don't be scared. Remember you are loved.'_

One night, after a particularly bad dream she responded back.

'_What does love have to do with anything?'_

The small boy who she had grown to see as her older brother, looked down at her.

'_Love is everything. Love is the most powerful magic of all. It takes away all of your fear. With love there is no need to be afraid. It can protect you. When you are loved and you love back nothing can stop you.'_

August held her closer, tightening his grip around her, keeping her from shivering '_And out there somewhere, Emma Swan, is someone who loves you.''_

Emma opened her eyes. The star had disappeared. It had probably never been there. Blinking fast she fought back the tears as her eyes began to sting.

And then she felt it. A burning white heat. She yelped as her hand came to cover the small expanse of skin on her left wrist. It was pain like she had never experienced. It felt like someone had taken to writing the alphabet on her wrist, but not with a pen, with a lightning bolt. When the pain ceased to remain she looked down at the spot where her hand connected to her wrist.

There on her pale skin, as dark as the night, was a mark. She could see it as clearly then as she could now standing in the jungle, surrounded by trees. On her wrist was a small tattoo in the shape of a flower. It was a lyon flower.

A large chime sounded in the distance as the clock outside her window struck midnight.

_SQ_

The young queen was perched in her normal spot under the stars on the kings balcony. The wintry night breeze caused her thin night gown to flutter around her leg, nipping at her frozen skin. Regina shivered but refused to move as the silent tears fell like crystals making ice tracks down her face.

The events of that night had been particularly harsh. Fresh bruises marked her arms intricately mimicking the patterns of her wedding lace.

Trying to shake the fresh memories of being nearly suffocated under the old kings weight, she let out a breath that curled and faded into white wisps in the frigid air. Her whole body was aching, she could feel herself nearly on the verge of collapse. But it wasn't the biting cold or the physical exhaustion that had her so weak. It was her waning heart.

It had now been over a month since the green sprite had appeared out of the blue to save the young queen from her impending death. At the time Regina had been thankful. That night on the balcony she had been contemplating the price of living her life in such agony versus the bliss of a never ending purgatory. However, sitting in the exact same spot now she was not so sure she was thankful for the little fairy who saved her. She was especially ungrateful for the deed of showing her her 'supposed' true love.

"_The man with the lion tattoo,"_ the fairy had said pointing through the fogged glass in the pub. There sat a man, with his back to the window in which the duo peered, holding a drink in his had, a lion crest tattooed on his wrist.

When questioned on how she knew that to be true the fairy simply replied that pixie dust had lead her there and that it was never wrong.

The teenage brunette pinched her arm, holding back a sob. She could feel the sting of the tears building behind her shut eyes but she would not let them fall. Yet again her destiny was being decided for her. She could still vividly remember opening the pub door, feeling the rush of something strong inside her pulling her into the rundown establishment. The sounds of joy and laughter spilled out into the street. But as quickly as the feeling had came to her it left, and the dread washed over her like an ice bath.

She couldn't go in.

She didn't know then what had pulled her away, but as soon as she had opened the door she slammed it shut, running as quickly as her feet would carry her back to the palace that had become her own personal prison.

_SQ_

The dense trees of the jungle around them shook.

"You need to focus Emma!"

The ex-mayor stood with her hands on her hips, baring over the blonde below her. They had been trying for the good portion of the past two hours to get Emma's magic under control and light a simple fire. She had tried to get the blonde to channel her anger into her magic to spark the flame but no such luck. In the hours they had stood there, the blonde had severed up nothing more than a measly flicker.

She had argued naively that 'there must be a way without going dark'. Oh how Regina snickered in her head as she heard the younger woman speak so boldly about things she knew not. But when the blonde called her a monster the smirk that had marred her annoyed expression, disappeared. There was no humor in the other womans voice as she huffed out the dreaded words. The ex-queen felt deep within her body, somewhere buried down low in the bottom of her heart of hearts, a wound that had been long forgotten, suddenly ripped open and cast into the unforgiving cold.

The exroyal turned, a cutting retort on the edge of her lips, but before her the blonde that had been so helplessly trying to ignite a simple flame had transformed from her fingertips to her toes into a raging cataract.

"What the Hell did you do!?" Regina gasped in surprise.

Before her eyes the solid form of Emma Swan began to waterfall, streams cascading from her hair which had nearly turned blue, fountains of crystals shot out of her hands. The lush green of the jungle around now gone, replaced by a luminous white-crystalline oasis.

The streams stopped when everything around the queen and the saviour was covered in white.

Regina took a moment to regain her senses as she stood in awe of the winter wonderland that she now stood in. The once tropical trees were covered in white, everything from the ground to the tips of the flowers that sprouted up glistening.

She didn't realize that she had frozen in place until she noticed the starstruck blonde grasping for anything to keep her upright as her legs began to fail.

"Emma!" The brunette ran over to the woman who had moments before become a human avalanche.

The force of the burst had sent the saviour barreling backwards as her knees collapsed below her on the frosted ground. Just as her body was about make contact with the frozen earth below her, soft hands wrapped around her torso bracing her descent.

The frost bitten blonde's head spun. A soft puff of warm air hit her cheek as she heard what sounded like frantic whispers above her.

She opened her eyes.

The haze of the now crystallized jungle came back into focus as she caught her breath. Feeling steady she looked around spotting the person holding her. It was Regina's arms that were wrapped around her, keeping her from dropping helplessly. The soft haze blurring her vision cleared and the face of the woman in question came into focus. She looked worried. The frantic movement of the woman's red lips informed Emma that she was speaking something while scanning her eyes over the blondes body as if assessing it carefully for signs of damage. With a swift swoop, Emma sat up straight, nearly colliding her head with the ex-mayor's.

"Are you alright?" Regina said, noticing that the women's blue tipped hair had nearly faded back to it's warm golden color.

Emma voice caught as soft fingers caressed her injured forehead while she spoke.

"Y-Yeah-" She shook her head, trying to clear the fog before her eyes. Instantly she missed the soft, soothing ministrations from the brunette, "that time was longer than the last."

Regina nodded, softly, "And stronger."

"God my head hurts." Emma commented. Regina nodded noticing as the blonde in her arms rubbed the skin directly above her heart instead of her head. She immediately logged that away with all of the other interesting quirks the Saviour seemed to have. Like preferring to eat peanut butter with a spoon directly from the container. Or always having to do things the right way and annoyingly so. Both of which were habits that she had seemed to pass down to Henry. However Regina would at least say that her sons other mother did at least carry a short fuse, which she found she liked much more than the women's mothers tendency to always look for the 'bright side.' Actually, on more occasions than one, the ex-mayor found herself in the midst of a heated argument with the blonde in front of her merely for enjoyment. She enjoyed riling the other woman up more than she'd like to admit. They were bipolar opposites and yet they found common ground wherever the wellbeing of their son was concerned. The fierce protection the other woman presented for Henry intrigued her. Dare she say she found it endearing? And though she'd never admit it, over the past few weeks, and especially in their short time on the island where time was stopped, they had undoubtedly grown closer.

Regina began to ponder why the blonde continued to experience magical bursts. In her short time in dealing with them herself she had found that her body released its pent up energy in the form of massive flames turning her into a burning inferno. Once nearly burning down her childhood home, when she had revisited it a year after her first loves death. Knowing that bursts were caused by unsurmountable amounts of stress she found herself wondering what was weighing so heavily on the supposedly bulletproof Saviour.

The body underneath her moved and without any forewarning the slight butterflies that she had been experiencing whenever she was in the close vicinity of the other woman for extended periods of time bristled up in her stomach. Immediately she squashed down the unwelcomed feelings as the woman still resting in her arms spoke.

"Why does this keep happening? Ow!"

Emma gripped her wrist as it began to burn white hot and then throb. Suddenly, without warning the arms around her, holding her up disappeared. It was only a split second before her back collided with the frozen ground.

"Ouch! Regina," She hissed letting go of her arm and rubbing her bruised head. Instantly the cutting words of pain she was about to unleash on the brunette died upon her lips as she caught sight of the woman in question. The look on the ex mayor's face did not show any sign of cruel intentions. No, on the other hand, the woman had moved as fast and as far away from the blonde as possible. The deep and normally lively brown eyes stared back at her almost dead, as if she had said she was a ghost.

"Regina, what is it?"

But the Queen didn't answer. Instead she sat there, frozen, her eyes glued to the newly bared flesh on the inside of Saviours left wrist. Emma looked down cautiously. Somewhere in the downpour of magical ice waves coursing through her like a dam, the small strands of bracelet that she wore had come off exposing the small flower tattoo on her wrist.

"My tattoo?" She asked. When the woman didn't answer but continued to sit there as if she were petrified, Emma shook her head.

"Yes, it's real. It's a flower. A lyon flower to be specific. I did a lot of research on it when it appeared. I-I know that sounds crazy but..." She trailed off, losing herself in the thought, not really sure how to continue she added, "Haven't seen it in years due to those bracelets."

And with that the brunette across from her shot up and bolted into the night.

_SQ_

As fast as she could on tip toe, The young Queen silently made way into her private chambers.

Her beloved husband, the King, was out on one of his many excursions and had taken his charming daughter Snow for company, leaving the new Queen alone in the castle. Though others might deem it odd, Regina quite prefered the silence and time by herself away from her unwanted lover.

She spent every second in her few blessed weeks of solitude in the library, learning everything she could about the magic of pixie dust and skin markings.

Nearly two moons had passed since the night the green sprite Tinkerbell had flown her to find her 'true love', only for her to run away. Since that night, Regina hadn't slept without restlessly staring at the ceiling for hours, replaying the events in her mind.

Something about that night disturbed her. She couldn't help the sinking feeling that she got deep in her gut whenever she thought about a handful of pixie dust deciding her future. How could some green powder know who her true love was?

Dusting off the heavy book she had dragged with her from the royal library onto the mattress she opened it. Scanning through the time tarnished pages, she began reading right where she had left off.

There were multiple illustrations of skin markings. Some described a certain trait of the person who bore it. Others were representations of the species of the person, faye or human. Her eyes zoomed through the ancient markings. She was thankful that her father had insisted that she learn to read all ancient tongues when she was young as these appeared to be ones that hadn't been used in a century.

"There!" She thought aloud. Readjusting her body to be able to see in the dim lighting she found what she had been looking for.

She dragged her pointer finger over the withered page. There was the chapter on marking that were said to resemble soul-mates. With her limited knowledge of the runes about the page, she made out as best she could, picking up that marking's such as these were as unique as the person they belonged to. And that though they were all originals, they tended to look alike, due to the nature of soul mates being such a rarity. Soul mate markings symbolize the roll in which the person had in the relationship or needed to have filled. However, in all documented cases, both soul mates bore a mark. The young Queen immediately abandoned her spot in the book, searching over herself for a mark she had not seen. Coming up with the knowledge that she already had, she sat back perplexed. She bore no mark. Nowhere on her body was there any symbol or possible alignment of freckles that could resemble anything other than flesh.

With a huff she slammed the book.

The fairy had been wrong, she had no mark. The man with the lion tattoo could not be her soul mate.

SQ

Emma dabbed at her eyes. Taking a deep breath she tried to keep her emotions in check as to not set off another ice attack.

However no matter what calming breathing techniques or mantras she repeated her thoughts continued to run ramped. She didn't know why she had done it. Why she had kissed Killian. She had just been so frustrated she rationalized with herself. The short amount of time she had spent on the island, cooped up with the pirate who was constantly hitting on her and her new found parents relentless smothering her, was wearing her thin. In the back of her mind she knew that she kept refusing to spend time with any of them saying that she needed to focus her energy on finding Henry however she couldn't help but jump at the chance to be beside the brunette woman whenever the opportunity arose.

Letting her thoughts drift to the woman in question she realized that the feeling felt familiar.

Whenever Emma had found herself silent in deep thought throughout the last few days she had undoubtedly been thinking in some way or another about her sons other mother. If she was honest, the shorter brunette had been on her mind for quite some time. Popping up with remarks about the importance of eating healthy whenever Henry asked to skip the vegetables and go for a pizza and ice cream night instead. Or whenever Emma was in her Sheriff office back in Storybrooke and the clack of heels came around the corner. Recently she found herself looking up in hopes to see the impeccably dressed mayor, only to feel a slight sinking feeling in her gut whenever it was Belle or Ruby with a surprise lunch. It wasn't the fact that she was hoping for the brunette to come around the corner that utterly petrified her. If she was completely honest she'd admit that she enjoyed the banter between them, no matter how much it irritated her when the insufferable woman was right. It was the fact that she found herself actually missing the other woman and counting the days in between visits from her.

Now standing at the edge of the sweltering jungle she couldn't understand the emotions playing what felt like an intense match of touch football in the pit of her stomach.

Why had the brunette run from her? She didn't understand. For a moment, when she was explaining her tattoo she thought she could see something swirling in the other woman's eyes. Something other than the blatant annoyance she had become so accustom to seeing. It was a combination of both fear and something else. Something she had never seen before in the woman. _Understanding_, maybe?

But even after, she had opened up to the woman. She had never told anyone about her tattoo, save for Neal. But that had been when she thought that she had truly loved him and that they would be together forever.

It was that bit that stung her the most. That vile sting of betrayal that rose up from her stomach and clotted in her throat threatening to cut off her air supply. She had thought that they had become closer. That somehow when the other woman had decided to help her with her moisture problem and unselfishly shield her from prying eyes, that maybe she had felt it too. Whatever that feeling was.

But she had been wrong. Nothing between them had changed. Regina was still the same cold hearted Mayor that she had been in Storybrooke. No amount of camaraderie that had arisen between them while teaming together to find their son mattered.

Nothing had changed. And that's what hurt.

So when the pirate had presented himself as she had been wallowing in her own mixed emotions, she finally let go. She had grabbed him, hoping that in some way she could gain an ounce of control back over herself and her emotions.

After the kiss though she knew for sure that that wasn't a possibility.

Her heart longed for someone else. For Regina.

_SQ_

The former Mayor of Storybrooke stared at her uncovered wrist. There on the soft flesh beneath her palm was a shape she knew all too well.

She had spent night after sleepless night as Queen, staring at the markings along her creamy skin. Tracing the outline, burning the imagine into her mind.

After giving up on the promises from her pixie friend, months had passed since Queen Regina had last thought about her true love and markings. However she still remembered the night when hers had appeared, searing itself as if it was rising up from underneath her flesh, printing itself onto the outermost layer of her skin. It was the night of her 16th birthday.

When the shape of her marking had become clear however, she had done all she could to find out what it meant.

She had torn through the Kings library while he was asleep.

Books were strewn everywhere. Pages ripped out. Nothing could give her the answers she was looking for. In the days to come, she had grown so restless in the need to know that she had ventured back to the home she had lived in as a child, feigning that she had homesickness to her husband and needed a few days alone with her family. Once she had made the days trek to the abandoned house however she went in search of the one place she said she'd never go. Her mothers vault.

It was just as daunting as she had remembered it as a child. The eerie presence about the place nipped at her fears. But she didn't let that stop her.

The young Queen burst through her mothers sealed doors. Bypassing the Hall of Hearts, she made her way through the many corridors down to the small library her mother kept.

Book after book, Regina had searched. There was nothing. Her mark appeared nowhere.

Sighing she looked down at the small was no way she was mistaking it for it's shape was clear. It was then that she remembered a conversation with her mentor, Rumpelstiltskin long forgotten.

"_Roast Swan." _He had said in reference to the swan on her dinner table, "_That's amusing, you'll get that later."_

'Swan,' Regina thought. 'Swans!' That was it! Her mark was the shape of a feather, a feather from a Swan! The young Queen's heart had swelled. She remembered the joy, the feeling that had rushed through her and consumed her. The feeling of hope. Sitting in her mother's vault she had never been more happy.

That was until this moment of course. Regina's head spun. Back on the island, where she stood now staring down at the small feather tattoo that had given her so much hope, all she could feel was a storm of emotions. She felt sick.

The Swan feather. Swans. Emma Swan. Emma was the swan!

Everything made sense and yet nothing made sense. Her marking, the one that had burned onto her wrist at the stroke of midnight on her 16th birthday, was for Emma. It symbolized what she was missing, what she needed. And the marking on Emma's own wrists was a symbol for her.

A lyon flower. A Lion. Lions! The fairy had been right!

Her soulmate, her true love, her second chance _did _have a lion tattoo.

For Regina, it was as if time stood still. The sound of the waves lapping on the shore dimmed, the trees stopped rustling in the jungle breeze. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of her heart beating on her ribcage like a drum.

Her true love was Emma? Emma.

The brunette felt her heart soar at the thought. Why had she never thought of it before? If she were completely honest she would admit that she had felt something for the mother of her son ever since the day that the woman had dropped him back off at her door. Since then it had been a blur. Anger and distrust had clouded their relationship from the beginning but they had grown through it. They had changed. She had changed. Arguments between them now were based on Henry's well being and seeing to it that he was protected. They had developed. They had originally fought over who was legally his out of hatred and spite, but now they only ever bickered, and usually it was for the betterment of him. They had almost, in the most unusual and dysfunctional way, become a team.

Regina felt her mind whirl as flashes of memories and moments appeared in her mind. Of the times when they used to fight as the Sheriff and the Mayor, then when Emma had carried her out of the burning building to safety. She thought of the time when the blonde had sawed a limb off of her apple tree, and then when they created magic to stop the diamond trigger from destroying their home. And now, she thought of them going after Pan, together, to save her son. Their son.

Regina laughed. She actually laughed.

She couldn't believe she had never seen it before. Emma was her soulmate.

The ex mayor spun around, she needed to find the saviour.

_SQ_

The trees were dense on the outer edges of the jungle.

Regina ran like she never had before. She needed to find Emma, she needed to know if this was real.

Thoughts about the blonde not liking her were pushed from her head. She didn't let the fact that this was outrageous, insane, crazy even deter her. She knew what she felt. What she had always felt. She couldn't worry about the technicalities, or the odds against them. If she was her destiny, she intended to give it a fighting chance. The thought that they were both women didn't even cross her mind. The Saviour and the Queen. The Sheriff and the Mayor. Emma and Regina. The Swan and the Lioness. It all made sense.

She huffed, running through the thickets of vines and tropical fauna.

It was only when she reached the outermost edge of the island that she caught a glimpse of golden blonde hair through the trees.

"Perhaps you're the one who couldn't handle it."

The pirate. Regina sighed, _of course he would be there, _trying to be his overly dashing self. What she wouldn't give for a portable sleeping curse right then.

The brunette peered through the trees to get a better view at the blonde currently facing the annoying captain.

And then her heart sank.

The blonde moved in so quickly, grabbing the leather clad man by his collar, connecting their lips in time that Regina felt her breathing stop. It was all so could do to stand there, shell shocked. She stared at the woman, kissing the irritating man in front of her and she felt like a dull knife was stabbing at her chest repeatedly. Never quite piercing the skin but leaving the bruises in it's wake.

The couple broke apart. It was only then when she noticed the blank expression on the mans face, as if he had been electrified by her touch. Emma's touch. Her true love.

Tears swarmed into the brunette's eyes, blurring her vision. Regina's heart clenched with the pain that was threatening to consume it and eat her whole. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't think. All she could do was stare. And then the other woman looked up.

Their eyes connected. And in that moment Regina could swear she could see the pain on her face, reflected in the woman before her.

"...don't follow me, wait five minutes. Go get some firewood or something." She heard Emma say.

And then, as if in slow motion, she saw the blonde start heading towards the tree's in which she stood.

Her heart beat quickened, thudding in her throat. She could feel her blood rushing, her body shaking as the woman who had been occupying her thoughts came closer. Emma had reached the tree's, close enough for her to know Regina had been standing there, and far enough out of the pirates eyesight to be seen. In that moment Regina did all she could think of doing.

She ran.

"Regina, wait!" She heard from somewhere behind her, but she was already long gone.

_SQ_

"I-I."

The ex mayor was at a loss for words. Her world was spinning. She had just found out that Emma Swan, the birth mother of her son and daughter of her arch enemy, was her true love.

Everything seemed to be in slow motion. The events of the days past whipped through her mind. Everything had fallen into place. She had just been going to tell the woman of her discovery, and that's when the disaster had happened.

Regina was having a hard time grappling with the reality of it all. That the moment that she had been waiting for all of her life. To find her second chance, her happiness, her soulmate had finally been right in front of her and it had all been ripped away from her in the blink of an eye. It wasn't until she heard the other womans voice calling her back to the present that she remembered to breathe again.

"Regina? _What _is wrong with you?!"

The brunette's brown eyes snapped back up to find blue one's staring back at her. There was something about them, some emotion swirling about in them that put her at unease. The concern on her face was apparent, but deep down below that a honest, true, thick layer of care was there. Mixed with worry and exhaustion, the small does of care in the women's eyes was enough to make her question herself.

How could she have kissed the pirate and felt something?

She had witnessed the whole event. She had seen the sparks shoot out from them as their lips met. And now looking at the woman holding her, she couldn't understand how any of that could have been true. The eyes staring back at her told a different story.

Regina took a deep breath. The woman in front of her seemed to ease a bit. The woman who had been so bent out of shape the day before that her magic had exploded right out of her very pours. She had become a raging tidal wave due to something causing her unsurmountable amounts of stress.

_What if that thing causing the unfappable saviour to burst hadn't been a thing at all, but a person? _Regina thought. _What if her burst could have been caused by emotions for said person? What if that person was - _

And then, as if it were a surprise to both parties the Queen grabbed the golden haired woman and kissed her.

_SQ_

David grabbed his shivering wife, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders.

Staring off into the starry night he wondered about his grandson. If he was okay, if he knew that they were coming to get him? He wondered about his sons mother, his newfound daughter. If she knew that they loved her? If she knew that they had always loved her? He wondered about the path that destiny had carved for them. About the way that they had sent their daughter away on a feather of hope, praying that one day they would be reunited, and that now 28 years later, they were. He wondered how all of the events around that had fallen into place. Like how they had all managed to travel to the same spot that their daughter had come through when the curse hit. How, even without their memories, he and Snow managed to find each other again. He wondered how Regina became the adopted mother of his grandson, Henry. The one that they, enemies and family alike were now all together searching and fighting for.

And then he found himself wondering if somewhere, each of their destinies were already recorded, written in the dust of the stars, just waiting for us to find them!

A shiver ran through his wife in her sleep and he rubbed her back. David stared at the stars.

They were amazingly bright that night.

And then as if someone had flipped down a light switch, they dimmed. Replaced by a bright lightening bolt of pure white light from somewhere deep in the jungle.

Craning his neck he peered out to see if he could spot the source of the bright light. But it just continued to shine. Bright and unrelentless, she light glimmered and glowed blindingly from the edge of the island.

Flipping over, David hummed to himself. He wouldn't get up and check it out as his first priority was to keep his wife safe!

Knowing his daughter, He would definitely find out what caused the light in the morning!

_SQ_

Emma's head was swirling like lights while on a carnival ride.

She was being kissed. Kissed by the Mayor, the Queen, Henry's other mother. Kissed by Regina.

She couldn't think. She couldn't breathe. All she could do was feel as the other women's soft lips moved across her own. They had both stood there almost stone still, shocked, as the other woman had kissed her out of the blue. But then they had both seemed to get over it as hands found soft cheeks and tangled in short hair, pulling each other unbelievably closer. When Regina sucked on her lip, parting them with her tongue she completely lost it.

A warmth shot through both women like a liquid fire.

There was no more island, no more beach. They were surrounded only by light. Only when the need for air became necessary did the kiss break. Emma opened her eyes and gasped.

All around them was light. Bouncing off of every corner. She hadn't noticed a thing but the feel of the other womans lips during the kiss but now, taking a look around, she saw that many things had happened.

For starters, the crystallized water that had been shooting out of her palms whenever she had a magical burst had once again let loose. However now it had wrapped around her and the woman holding her close. Surrounding them in a circle of spinning ice, but also one of fire. Taking a closer look, it appeared that the same thing had happened to her had happened to Regina. She had shot out a blaze of fire that was now swirling amongst the ice, encapsulating them.

Their magic had joined together, creating a light brighter than anything she had ever seen before.

Emma glanced down at the woman in her arms, with her eyes were closed and mouth parted.

"Regina." She heard herself saying.

As if awoken from sleep, the brunette's eyes flickered open. At the sight the woman gasped, taking in their new surroundings of swirling magic. Her eyes followed the light, finding it centered at the points in which their hands were joined. White magic.

She felt the warmth and sudden coolness of the space between them. It was as if nothing else mattered.

Finally, after staring long enough her eyes made their way back to the woman across from her. Her soul mate. The one she had been waiting her whole life to meet. Her second chance, her true love.

Without a second thought Regina felt herself smile. A bright, warm smile that lit up her whole face somehow even more than the light that encompassed them.

Emma watched as the woman in her arms laughed, her shoulders shaking with mirth sending her short hair wriggling about her shoulders with the movement, She had never looked more beautiful.

And then all of a sudden she felt her mark burn.

Both of them looked down to their wrists to see more light emanating from it. And then, in a blink of an eye, the light was gone. Both of them gasped.

There, where the old symbols had been lay a new mark.

Regina lifted her wrist closer to her eye to see. It was a small image of a full grown swan with a little crown lying over it's head. Her mind was about to spin in order to figure out it's meaning, but she stopped it. Snapping her eyes back up to the blonde who was still staring in wonder at her wrist, she placed her fingers under the woman's chin, lifting it up so that their eyes made contact again.

"I think there are many things we are going to have to talk about," she started, staring deeply into the depths of the beautiful blue eyes before her. "But that will be later, right now I am going to kiss you."

And with that, the Lioness leaned in, kissing her Swan. Sparks flew everywhere.

* * *

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